Eastwood Directs "Star is Born" Remake

Clint Eastwood is set direct and produce the fourth incarnation of "A Star Is Born" for Warner Bros. Pictures says Deadline.

The story centres on a showbiz ingenue who falls for an alcoholic musician, only to see their careers move in opposite directions.

Three previous film versions have happened, the last being the 1976 version with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson. Like that, this version will be set in the music industry rather than film industry like the first two films. The most famous version is the second in 1954 with Judy Garland and James Mason.

Will Fetters ("The Lucky One," "Remember Me") was hired in 2009 to pen a new draft of the script with the aim of pushing the long-gestating project forward. Stephen Rivele and Christopher Wilkinson ("Ali") along with Reggie Rock Bythewood ("Notorious") have penned previous drafts.

Back in February last year, Russell Crowe and Beyonce Knowles were the reported front runners for the roles though Will Smith, Eddie Murphy, Robert Downey Jr and Jon Hamm had all been floated as potential candidates.

The idea is that this would be Eastwood's first post-"J. Edgar" project with shooting to kick off in the Fall for release sometime mid-late 2012. Jon Peters, Billy Gerber and Basil Iwanyk are producing.